


Tomorrow

by sanctuary_for_all



Series: John's Heart [1]
Category: Person of Interest (TV)
Genre: Character Death Fix, F/M, First Time, Fix-It, Fluff and Angst, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-06-28
Updated: 2014-08-08
Packaged: 2018-02-06 13:11:10
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 7
Words: 2,672
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1859256
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sanctuary_for_all/pseuds/sanctuary_for_all
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>“I’m not going to let him hurt you.” John’s tone was almost gentle, but the steel running beneath the words made it clear he considered them nothing more than simple fact. “There’s no negotiation on this.”</p><p>***Now with epilogue!***</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This is a major fix of "The Crossing" (aka Joss's death) that just snips out that last horrible scene and takes the whole thing in another direction. I should have posted it half a season ago, but it's taken me this long to recover.

The little half-smile John had given her made his face light up in that way she loved so much, the warmth in his eyes making Joss hope for things she thought she’d forgotten about.

Both faded all too quickly once he heard that they hadn’t found Simmons yet. He scanned the street as they stepped outside, his entire body subtly tense as if he expected someone to jump out of an alleyway at any moment.

“We’ll find him, John.” Joss stopped them both, touching his arm. She wouldn’t take those kind of reassurances if their situations were reversed, any more than she knew he would now. But that didn’t stop the need to give them. “The FBI is looking just as hard as we are.”

His jaw tightened. “Tell me you let them give you protection.”

She nodded. “There’ll be someone pulling the night shift in front of my house for the next little while.”

John shook his head, still not looking at her. “Not enough.”

Joss’s fingers tightened on his arm. She wasn’t entirely sure when the touch had turned into a hold, an involuntary move she couldn’t regret. “John…”

He stopped his surveillance long enough to meet her gaze, and she remembered the look on his face through the security camera feed. It was only in the morgue that she’d finally realized that was what terror looked like on John Reese.

She’d always known how she felt about him. But until that moment, it had genuinely never occurred to her that he might feel the same way.

“I’m not going to let him hurt you.” John’s tone was almost gentle, but the steel running beneath the words made it clear he considered them nothing more than simple fact. “There’s no negotiation on this.”

Joss made herself let go of him when she saw Harold’s car pull up, far too conscious of where they were. “We’re not finished with this,” she murmured, remembering that moment in the morgue when she’d realized what John was about to do. Remembering catching one last look at John in that bomb vest, desperately afraid that it would be the last time she'd ever see him. “Tonight. Back door.”

John nodded, clearly thinking that she was still talking about Simmons. “Always.” He slipped into the car, but it didn’t pull away until she was safely back inside the station.


	2. Chapter 2

He was waiting for her when she got home that night, ready with a counter-argument before she’d even opened her mouth. “You’d never get Simmons to turn state’s evidence. I know the type. He’d rather die than talk, and rather kill than either.”

Joss stood in the doorway, just watching him. “I know.”

John hesitated briefly, as if that wasn’t the answer he’d been expecting, then took a step towards her. “I know how you feel about the law. But I can’t risk you.”

“I know.” She could admit, if only to herself, that losing her faith in law and order was the thing that had truly sent her spiraling these last few months. It had been her rock after she’d left the military, the thing she’d used to steady herself, and when it broke she’d fallen right back into the soldier mindset. Back then, it had been safer to fight alone.

But she wasn’t alone anymore.

John’s brow lowered as he took another step towards her. “You know,” he said quietly. “And you still don’t think I should kill him.”

Joss shook her head, smiling a little as she thought about the conversation they’d had after the bomb vest incident all those months ago. “You’re really not very good at guessing what I’m thinking, are you?” She crossed the rest of the distance between them, her expression sobering as she laid her hand against his chest. She only rarely let herself touch him, because it was so hard to force herself to let go. “All I’m asking is that you be careful, John. Please.” Her chest caught on the memory of everything that had almost happened. “I put you in too much danger last night as it was.”

“It was your danger.” His voice was soft, and the tenderness in his eyes was enough to make her heart hurt. “I would have hated to be anywhere else.”

 “And I would hate to be stuck here without you.” Her throat tightened, fingers curling in the front of his shirt as she tugged him down to her level. “The one thing I think you don’t understand is that I can’t lose you, either.”

The kiss was gentle, just like the one they’d stolen back at the morgue, but this time there was nothing forcing them to let go of each other. She had time to learn the shape of his mouth, to press in close and get a deeper taste of him. He held her like she was something precious, and made a little pleased sound low in his throat that she definitely wanted to hear again.

Even when they broke apart, they only let an inch or two of space come between them. “So how about this,” Joss murmured, knowing she sounded breathy but not caring in the slightest. “I’ll stay alive for you, if you stay alive for me. Deal?”

He didn’t say anything for a moment, watching her face as if he wanted to memorize it. Then the corners of his mouth curved upward into that same, wonderful little half-smile of his. “Deal.”

Happier than she could remember being in a long time, she pulled him down for another kiss.


	3. Chapter 3

A feather-light touch on her face brought her up out of the darkness. "Joss?"

She opened her eyes, but it was still dark enough outside that the light level didn't change a great deal. "Don't tell me you usually wake up this early," Joss murmured, reaching her hand up to tangle her fingers with John's. He was sitting on the edge of the bed, and though the light was low she could see the line of his suit.

"What can I say?" She could hear the smile in his voice, and he tightened his hand around hers. "I'm a morning person."

They both knew the real reason he was getting such an early start, though neither of them said it out loud. Instead, she slid her hand up his arm, keeping her voice light. "I hate to break it to you, but it won't be morning for a few hours yet."

"I knew I needed to buy a new watch." John leaned forward, lips pressing against her forehead in a way that made her throat tighten. "I'm sorry I woke you. I just didn't want to leave without saying goodbye."

"Don't say goodbye." She tugged him down for a quick kiss, already missing him. "All I want to hear from you is that you'll come right back here when you're done."

John didn't say anything for a long moment, just watching her face. She wondered how much he could see. "Are you sure?" he asked finally, voice soft.

Emotion wrapped itself around her heart like a fist, squeezing tight. "As sure as I've ever been of anything," she whispered, eyes stinging as she pulled him down for one more kiss.


	4. Chapter 4

Going back to sleep after that was impossible, so she gave up and went to work. Hours later, Harold called. "Good morning, Detective."

The tension that had knotted up in Joss's stomach uncoiled a little. Harold was worse at hiding his worry for John than even Joss was, and right now his voice was mostly normal. “Morning. Need help with something?”

“Not today. It seems wisest to keep both you and Detective Fusco more on the periphery of our work until the FBI has wrapped up their case against HR.” There was a hesitation on the other end of the phone that meant he was building up to the real reason he was calling. “Actually, I was wondering if you were aware of Mr. Reese's current project.”

Joss heard the unspoken question, but wasn’t immediately sure how to answer it. She knew they should take Simmons in and force him to face prosecution, but she and John had already nearly died bringing in Quinn. Risking that again – risking John like that again – was too much.

Besides, it had been _John_ everyone had been hunting that night. The longer Simmons was alive, the greater the chance John could end up with a bullet in his back.

"Yeah," Joss said quietly, letting Harold decide which question she was answering. "I am."

"Good to know." There was nothing but understanding in the words. "If he needs assistance, I may be in touch."

She smiled, reassured in the way she suspected he’d meant her to be. "Thanks."

His voice was as warm as she had ever heard it. "Any time, Joss."


	5. Chapter 5

Joss didn't sleep much that night, waking up tired enough that Fusco started shooting her questioning looks throughout the day. Simmons' name was enough of an explanation that he didn't press her about it, but she could feel his concern.

That next evening, Agent Driscoll called to tell her that Simmons' body had been found and ask whether she felt comfortable with them pulling her security detail. She said yes, waiting for the relief she knew she should be feeling that the man was finally off the streets. Harold would have called her if something had happened to John. He was fine.

But there was still no John. No call, no text, not even a message from Harold. Later that night, staring up at her darkened ceiling and giving up any pretense of sleep, Joss gave up and reached for her cell phone.

"Won't work. I broke mine." The sound of John's voice from the darkness had her going still, relief crashing into her hard enough that she felt tears threaten. "Harold wasn't happy."

"I imagine he wasn't." Sitting up, she caught John's arm and pulled him down into the bed with her. He wasn't wearing his jacket, and as he settled in next to her she felt bandages underneath the edge of his shirt. Carefully, she checked his other side for injuries before laying down next to him and tucked her head against his shoulder. "You'll have more energy to let him yell at you if you get a good night's sleep."

John let out a long breath, and slowly she could feel his muscles start to relax. "You can tell Taylor it's safe to come back now," he said after a moment, gingerly wrapping his arm around her.

"I'll call him tomorrow," she murmured, moving her hand so that it rested against his heart. The steady beat of it underneath her palm was more easing than any sleeping pill could have been, and her tired body finally took over as the worry drained out of her.

Just as she was about to drift off, she felt John's lips against the top of her head. She smiled against his shirt, breathing in the scent of home.


	6. Chapter 6

The next morning, Fusco dropped the morning paper on Joss’s desk. “You hear about this?”

“It’s all over the news, Fusco. Everyone’s heard about it.” Still, she scanned the article splashed across the top of the front page. This one skipped the photos of the crime scene entirely, using only Simmons’ departmental photo, and the article itself had a better recapping of the case than some of the reports. The headline, however, was similar to all the others: "Prime suspect in corruption case found dead on Lower East Side."

Agent Driscoll had called her last night to give her the news himself. He'd admitted there was no usable forensic evidence, but he hadn't sounded too concerned. Solving the murder of a man who had killed so many others was pretty low on the FBI's priority list at the moment, thankfully.

It was only after John had appeared, however, that she had truly been able to sleep soundly.

Fusco eyed her like he knew he was missing something. “Rumor is that Simmons tried to access his criminal connections, either to get out of Dodge or help take you out, and they decided he was too toxic to just say no to.” He leaned forward slightly. “I do know that some of the guys the FBI pulled in on that last raid are suddenly a lot more interested in talking now that they know Simmons ain’t around.”

“Good.” Feeling the vibration that said she’d received a text, she pulled out her phone to check the message.

_Tell Taylor hi for me._

“Anyone I know?”

It was only when Fusco spoke that Joss realized her expression had softened helplessly as she’d read John's text. She thought briefly about lying, then decided she’d had more than enough of keeping secrets from the people closest to her. “Our mutual friend.”

She’d tried to keep the words neutral, but Fusco’s eyebrows climbed up nearly to his hairline. Joss met his gaze calmly, the surprise slowly disappearing as he mulled the matter over. “So,” he asked finally, “would pest control be the Wonder Boy equivalent of flowers, or chocolates?”

Joss turned back to her computer, fighting to keep the smile off her face. “I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

He grinned. “Sure, you don’t.”


	7. Epilogue

Their latest number was a barista in the West Village, a young woman named Samantha with no criminal history who was currently taking night classes towards her CPA degree. The most likely source of trouble was an estranged father with possible ties to the Russians, but after this long on the job John had learned to always expect the unexpected.

At the moment, he was sitting at one of the tables outside a cafe with a good view of the coffee shop, pretending to read the paper while taking pictures of the people coming and going and sending them to Harold. If she _was_ involved in anything, her work would be a good, discreet place to make contact. So far, though, there had been no sign of anything unusual.

Feeling the buzz of a text, he kept one eye on the shop while he slid his phone out of his pocket to check. When he saw who it was from, he couldn't stop the smile.

_Taylor says thanks for watching out for us both._

John's chest warmed as he slid the phone back into his pocket. Despite the text he'd sent her, he would have understood if she hadn't said anything to Taylor – even with what had happened between them, he belonged to a part of her life that she had kept very separate from her son.

Apparently, that had changed.

"Is Detective Carter well?"

John wasn't surprised by Harold's carefully phrased question. Even though he'd only gotten his new phone this morning, he had no doubt the other man knew he had spent two of the last three nights at Joss's. Though they hadn't discussed it, he had no interest in hiding anything from Harold. "She's fine. She was just continuing a conversation we'd started earlier."

In the long silence on the other end of the line. When Harold spoke, there was old sadness in his voice. "We live dangerous lives, John."

"I know." He'd had this discussion with himself a thousand times. "But so does she."

"True." He heard Harold sigh. "My apologies, Mr. Reese."

"Nothing to be sorry for." John smiled a little, marveling at the conversation they were having. "Friends worry about each other."

Harold's voice gentled. "They also want their friends to be happy, which is why the only other thing I will say on the matter is that I wish you both the very best." There was a brief pause, and when he spoke again his voice was all business. "The blond man who just walked into the coffee shop is a member of Yogorov's defense team."

"Well, that's interesting." Abandoning his paper, John slid out of his seat and got ready to move into position.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Come check out my original short fiction on my [blog](http://jennifferwardell.blogspot.com) or say hi to me on [Tumblr](http://sanctuaryforalluniverses.tumblr.com)!


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